The hazy air over Utah holds more than our ‘normal’ pollutants, and it’s sticking around

SALT LAKE CITY — The hazy air in Utah on Thursday can be traced to dust from our neighboring southern states, some of which are experiencing extreme to exceptional drought.  And the amount of dust in the air could be a concern for those with respiratory issues who want to be outside this weekend.

 The dust blew in from the southwest earlier this week. And it’ll take another front to blow it out, said Jon Wilson, a meteorologist with Salt Lake National Weather Service.

“Until you get something to mix it out, like another frontal boundary, it’s essentially allowed to sort of remain in place,” he told KSL NewsRadio.

 

Utah air filled with traveling dust

In some instances, the dust traveled several hundred miles.

“We’re talking across portions of southern California, southern Nevada into Arizona, west desert areas. That’s all contributing to (Utah’s haze).”

The temperatures across Utah will stay unusually warm through Saturday, and a cold front is expected in the state by Sunday.

That will usually clear the air, according to Wilson, unless the south receives no rain. 

“What would really help this situation, in terms of … impacting the northern Wasatch Front, is more precipitation in the southwest or just fewer frontal boundaries that pick up that stuff,” Wilson said.

Adding to the issue is Utah’s own problem with winter air pollution. Combined with the southwest’s dust, and Utah gets hazy skies through Sunday.

Exercising/recreating outside this weekend

Though the forecasts from the Utah Department of Environmental Quality indicate that the air quality will hover in the “moderate” range, those Utahns with respiratory issues should consider staying inside through Sunday.

These include people with:

• asthma, COPD, or heart disease,
• young children (their respiratory systems are still developing), and
• the elderly.